Torts: Cases, Principles, and Institutions

by John Fabian Witt, Karen Tani

This is the Fifth Edition of Torts: Cases, Principles, and Institutions, a casebook for a one-semester torts course that carves out a distinctive niche in the field by focusing on the institutions and sociology of American tort law. The book retains many of the familiar features of the traditional casebook, including many of the classic cases. Like the best casebooks, it seeks to survey the theoretical principles underlying those cases. But it aims to supplement the cases and principles with editorial notes that focus students’ attention on the institutional features of our tort system, including features such as the pervasiveness of settlements, the significance of the market, the role of the plaintiff's bar, the importance of private insurance, the contingency fee, and the jury. These institutional arrangements are what make American tort law distinctive. They are how the substantive doctrines of tort law are translated into the practice of torts lawyers. And they are sociologically fascinating in their own right.

TCPI integrates the institutional materials into the cases and notes rather than segregate them into separate sections of their own. It does so because its aim is not to teach the details of any one institution, such as the mechanics of the law of subrogation or workers’ compensation. Few one-semester torts classes can take up so much material. Instead, the book integrates the institutional material into the main text to draw general lessons about the massive, sprawling systems of private administration that American law has created under the umbrella of our torts system.

682 pages, Paperback

Published July 1, 2020

Reviews

[Asma · Rating 1 out of 5]

she res on my ipsa until I loquitur

[kenz · Rating 2 out of 5]

too many cases from 1800s england

[Ananya]

people say “don’t judge that could be you one day.” why would i ever take a package of fireworks on a train

[Maya Huffman · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little more exciting than contracts. Had a little bit more tea to make it kinda fun.

[Jack Flaningam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unless you have a vast interest in court cases and the development of different tort cause of actions, I would imagine, like myself, you have been subjected to this book as a 1L in law school. Very interesting material and has been super informative in helping me understand tortious claims.

Note: If you are not reading this book for pleasure, you may lose your will to live at times going through this casebook. That said, enjoyed some of it, 3⭐️s

[Katie Sanyal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great textbook